Washing machine



Sept. 19, 1944. DEHLE 2,358,691

WASHING MACHINE Filed July 25, 1939 2 sheets-sheet 1' BY I 0770 ATTORN.

Sept. 19,- 1944. o. 'r. DEHLE 1 WASHING MACHINE 2 Shets-Sheet 2 Filed July 25. 1939 INVEBIJTOR. 0/70 KAI/91L" projecting water jets entering Patented Sept. 19, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WASHING mom Otto T. Dehle, Long Island City, N. Y. Application July '25, ess, Serial No. 286,300 2 Claims. (01. (is-.184)

The present invention relates to clothes washing machines and is shown as particularly applied to a clothes washing machine intended for use in commercial laundries, but it will be apparent to those conversant with the art that the principles of my invention may be applied to clothes washing machines and the like, generally. 1

In the washing of. clothes, other textiles, furs and skins,-one of the great problems is to prevent the entangling and balling-up of the clothes as well as damage due to stretching, pulling and yanking the same. Of course, there is the everpresent problem of increased speed of completing the washing and rinsing operations and doing so without causing any. lmdue wear upon the fabrics, etc. With my washing machine the clothes action is so greatly improved that the clothes are continually prevented from entangling or ball-' ing-up, and at the same time the clothes are subiected to greater agitation, squeezing and abrading upon themselves in the course of the operation of the machine, than heretofore obtained.

One of the features of the improved washing action resides in creating a movement of the clothes upwardly and outwardly from the center of the machine toward each side thereof. This action is totally difierent from the action in other 'clotheswashing machines and is the reverse of the action normally obtained in those: clothes washing machines where the source of agitation is at the center of the tub.

In commercial lalmdries particularly, there is present not only the above problems but 'also the disposal, the accessibility of problems of sludge the apparatus, 'emcient use of labor, the conservation of floor space, and keeping the capital investment in machinery and eq ipment low. All

of these phases have been materially improved by my new washing machine. I

It is one object of my invention to provide a washing machine in which the clothes will be subjected to the action of spaced-apart upwardly g the tub near the center of the bottom thereof.

It is anotherobject of 'my invention to provide .a clothes washing machine wherein the clothes are caused to-travel upwardly at the center of the machine, to divide into two or more paths moving outwardly toward the sides of the machine, and thence downwardly along the sides of the machine and across the bottom toward the center thereof.

' I I, an inner tub manifolds l3, the water which is lifted and tilted by power operated means I ished.

Other and further objects of my invention will be apparent from the following description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a plan view of a clothes washing machine embodying my improved construction:

Fig. 2 is an end view of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a vertical cross-section on the line 3-3 ofFig.1,and;

Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section through the water manifold on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawings, my improved washing machine contains anouter tub or container plied wtih water under pressure from a pair of being circulated by the pump which is driven by the motor IS. The water action in my machine will be described v first, followed by a description of the mechanical dumping of the contents of the machine.

It will be noted that the tubs are substantially The rounded sides and bottom are usedto facilitate the washing which the outlet of the pump I4 is connected 12 which overlis the the jet openings 2|,

action and it willjbe apparent to those familiar with machines intended for this P rpose that the tub may be of other shapes, such as semisphericai, and a similar washing action can be obtained. The outer tub 'II is provided with asump l6 located along the g lowermost portion of the tub. The sump is provided with an outlet connection I! to the pump II. The water manifolds I3 are located in the sump and are interconnected bythe pipe [8 to y meansof the pipe IS. The spray manifolds have a plurality of jet openings 2| along the top thereof and as shown in Fig. 1 the jet openings in the parallel manifolds II are interspaced along the lengths thereof.

The inner container I! has a flattened bottom sump l6 and has series of perforations 23 therein which register with At the top of the sides the upper portions of the tubs are straight, as

- indicated by the bracket 20. and not-a co'ntinuation of the cylinder.

or basket-like container l2, suplongitudinal center line of the From the described arrangement of parts it is seen that as water passes from the pump 14 it enters the manifolds It, the pressure bein equally distributed therein, and the water jets are projected upwardly along opposite sides of the longitudinal center line of the machine and close thereto. This, together with the shape of the container l2 causes the water action to be upwardly at the center, outwardly across the top of the tubs to the sides thereof, and downwardly along the side walls, which converge at the bottom adjacent the water jets.

when clothes or nets of clothes are present in division thereof at the top.

Due also to the longer drop of the clothes from the top to the bottom of the tub as compared to the path across the top of the machine, the clothes are subjected to a violent tumbling action which causes the, clothes to weave and rub against each other in many different planes and positions thereby causing the to the sump I6. Of course, in addition to the openings 25 along the top of the tub at and above the water level, the inner tub i2 is also provided with a multitude of other perforations 26, the purpose of which will be explained fully hereinafter but insofar as this problem of preventing the accumulation of sludge is concerned, it is apparent that the water is also free to move back and forth through these openings 26 as the clothes action takes place in the machine.

As one of the features of my machine I also provide a protection against wearing abrasion of the clothes because of the presence of perforations in the container l2, by providing the unperforated portion 21 being the sets of perforations 25 and 26. It will be noted that these areas 21 along the sides of the machine will extend below the water level so that the clothes coming across the machine from the center engage the smooth sides walls of the tub and begin the downward movement in theirorbits along this smooth surface.

Before describing the filling and emptying of the machine, attention will be called to a few structural details. At the top, the outer tub H is provided with an angle iron-3i, which will be added kneading action to loosen the dirt em-.

bedded in the clothes and to permit the free passage of the water and cleansing solution through the fabrics. The action upon the clothes at the bottom of the tub is that they are squeezed together, then they open up as the clothes are moved across the top, and then are subjected to this tumbling action and again squeezed when the clothes are brought together in the center. All of these actions occur continuously in the machine to effect a very quickand thorough washing.

It is contemplated that the same type of machine will be used in the subsequent rinsing operations and again these multiplicity of actions greatly speed up and increase the thoroughness with which the clothes are rinsed, blued and bleached.

One of the principal objections heretofore to the water-jet types of machines, especially in commercial laundries. has been the accumulation of sludge, composed of the undissolved fatty acids, dirt, lint, etc., on top of the water, and

' which settles on the clothes either as the machine is drained or as the clothes are removed therefrom. In my new machine there is no opportunity for the sludge to accumulate at any time or place because all the water and solution is continuously circulating, and subjected to a very turbulent action throughout the machine aeration. Furthermore, special provision is welded or otherwise secured to the .tub, and is arranged to provide an inturned lip thereon. The

inner tub or container i2 is provided with a T-iron 32 which may be welded or otherwise secured to the tub. One side of the T overlaps the lip 3i so as to form a support for the inner tub or container, and the other side of the T extends inwardly to provide an over-hanging lip 32 for the tub, which serves as a splash guard above the water level 24. It will be noted from Fig. 1 that the angle and T-iron's 3| and 32 extend around all four sides of the tub.

The upper tub is supported upon a frame 34 which has a cross bar 35 upon which the platform 36 of the motor driven pump is mounted. Along the bottom 22 of the inner container, at each side thereof, are the reinforcing longitudinally extending angle irons 31.

At the :bottom of the outer tub the sump I6 is provided with a dump valve 4|. This valve has ports 42 which register with the ports 43 in the sump whenever the tub is to be emptied. The valve may be operated in any appropriate manner, and is indicated as being operated by the hand lever 44 through the link 45 which is connected to the car 46 carried by the valve. As seen in Figs. 3 and 4, the valve 4| slides in the guides 41 at each side thereof, and there is a tapered relationship between the sump, guides and valve block 4| so that the operator may be sure f-maintaining a tight closure of the valve. The ma chine may drain into a trough 48 in the floor of the laundry, or other disposition may be made made at the sides of the machine for the passing off of the water at the water level, for re-circulation.

The water level is indicated by the line 24. It will be noted that just above this level the tub is provided along its straight sides with a plufality of large openings llpwh'ich I have indicated as being arranged in two rows. Thus the waterat thetopofthe tubasitis agitatedpasses outwardly from the center to the sides thereof, and through the openings 2| into the outer tub ll where it is free to pass down the walls'thereof of the water'and fluid.

The containers will be made of appropriate material such as Allegheny metal, stainless steel, etc., but the fiat end plates 39 of the machine should be of suiiiciently heavy construction to withstand the pressures occurring in the tub which pressures of course vary with the loading and size of the machine, etc.

In order to flll the machine with water, either .before or after the clothes have been deposited in the container ll, one or both sides of the machine-may be provided with a filling manifold 5| which, as seen in Fig. 1, has openings 52 that register with openings 52 and I4 in the side walls of the outer and inner containers, respectively.

The supply manifold II is connected to the main water supply pipe 55 and'its operation is controlled by means of the valve 86 located inthe.

branch pipe 51. Of course, any other suitable method of controlling or filling the machines may be provided, but this spray type of filling arrangemeat at the top of the machine has been found desirable in overcoming the objectionable feature of air pockets among the clothes.

It will be noted that the supplypipe 55 is shown broken away at each end thereof. Like.-

wise, there is connected in dot and dash lines 58,

a second washing machine unit which is placed in juxtaposition to the first machine, and successive machines may he provided on either side of the first described machine depending upon the number of washings, rinsings, etc, to which the particular laundry may subject the goods-being cleansed.

It is one of the features of this invention to provide a machine that is readily adaptable to such multiple unit operation with a minimum of fioor space requirements.

My invention also includes facilitating the transfer of the load of clothes, etc., from one machine to the next, and I propose to mechanically dump the whole load of clothes from one machine to the next so that the operator never needs to touch the clothes from the time of the beginning of the operation to the finishing thereof after washing, rinsings, blueing, bleaching, etc., and certainly needs not lift the same. Of course, the

dumping may be accomplished by any of a number of power-operated mechanisms. 1 provided,

by way of example, a simple hydraulic arrangement.

The inner container has fastened to each sideto the frame 34. As will be noted fromFig. 1,-

the cylinders 66 and associated mechanisms are mounted to extend beyond the sides of the machine so that the next machine unit may be positioned alongside the first machine unit.

The operation of the hydraulic devices 66 is ation. It will be apparent that modifications may be Si has been turned on the pivot 82- and the con-.

tainer 12 has been raised to its uppermost-position shown. It will be apparent that as the container i2 is lifted the water thereinfiows out of that container through the multiplicity of. openlugs 26 and, as the containerv is tilted the draming also takes place through the large openings= 25 at the upper edge 'of the machine.

when the container l2 has reached the upper position shown in Fig. 2, the clothes fall into the second or succeeding machine-unit for the next step in the washing operations. When the handie 59 of. the'two-way valve 68is moved to the discharge; position, indicated in dot and dash line, this permits the discharge ofthe water contained in the cylinder 66 through the outlet pipe 12, the weight of the tube and theproportioning of the parts being such that it automatically assumes its lowered position. At the same time I .the water in the cylinder 66 discharges. suiiiciently slowly that the same has a dash-pot action during the settling of the inner container l2 to the washing position shown in Fig. 3.

Inasmuch as the operation of the machine has been given as the description has proceeded, it

seems unnecessary to further describe the opermade in the arrangement and location of parts and such modifications are intended tobe cov-.

ered in the scope I claim: I 1 1. In a clothes washing machine, a semi-cylindrlcal perforated container having side and end walls and being of greater length than width,

of the appended claims.

. a semi-cylindrical tub, means for supporting the controlled by a two-way valve 68 shown in Fig. 2.

In the position of the handle 68 shown in this figure, the valve is open to admit water from the supply pipe to'the flexible pipes 10 and II leading to the cylinders 66.

dash lines in Fig. 2. In that position, the arm The piston as is ,forced to the lower position shown in dot and container within and spaced from the tub, and means for causing a continual circulation of clothes and water from the vertical center line of the tub outwardly toward each of thesides of the container, the container having rows 'of' larger perforations in the sides of the'container about in line with the water level in the tub.

2. In a clothes washing machine, a stationary semi-cylindrical perforated basket of, greater length than width and having a flattened bottom portion, a. semi-cylindrical tub, means for supporting the basket in spaced relation in thetub,

a sump mounted at the bottom of'thetub and extending longitudinally thereof along the vertical center line of the'tub, a pair of water manifold pipes mounted the length of the sump, spray jet openings in the top thereof, registering openings in the flattened bottom of the basket, and a motor-driven pump connected to the sump and to the spray manifolds for producing vertical spray jets along and adjacent to the center line of said basket. 

